This Week in Immigration: a Departure from Arizona and a DREAM-like Advance

Deck

To say immigration has been a hot topic for state governments might be the understatement of the past two years. More than 1,400 policy proposals on the issue flooded state Capitols in 2009 and 2010 each, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, noting that a record number—more than 300—passed last year alone. The trend has shown few signs of retreating here in Colorado, where two measures targeting the arrest and deportation of immigrants in the state illegally died this week (via 9News). They were modeled, in part, on the contentious and legally dubious enforcement policy passed in Arizona last year, which has been proposed in numerous states but has yet to pass elsewhere. (Arizona's latest anti-immigration proposal—"the farthest reaching of its kind"—also died this week.)

But another immigrant-targeted bill is hanging on. After eight attempts in the past decade, state Democrats are making economic arguments for legislation that would grant in-state college tuition to certain undocumented students who graduate from Colorado high schools, writes Education News Colorado. The bill cleared the Education Committee on a 5-2 vote yesterday (via 9News).